Women workers fight for fairness at defence complex

Women workers at a huge defence depot are fighting for fairness and free period products.

A petition signed by more than half the workforce at the 180-acre site, in Ayrshire, calls for sanitary products to be offered to women.

Most workers at the depot in Beith, which is run by Defence Supply and Equipment (DE&S) for the Ministry of Defence, are men but trade union GMB Scotland said all must be treated with dignity and respect.

The union organised the petition signed by 125 staff, more than half the workforce, and GMB Scotland organiser Howard Wilkin is urging action at the complex where arms and munitions for UK defence forces are assembled and prepared for transport.

He said recent legislation at Holyrood encouraged many employers to offer free sanitary products across the public sector and urged DE&S management to follow that example.

Wilkin said: “All staff at Beith, whether male or female, should feel similarly supported and encouraged to believe their concerns are being listened to and addressed.

“The petition, which was supported by the majority of workers, male or female, simply asks for quality sanitary products to be provided free at the point of need.

“We would encourage management to do the right thing on this specific issue but by doing that, more generally, help ensure every staff member feels heard and valued.”

In 2022, Scotland became the first country in the world to make period products free for all with local authorities providing items such as tampons and sanitary pads to "anyone who needs them".

MSPs unanimously approved the Period Products (Free Provision) bill in November 2020 after six years of campaigning by Labour MSP Monica Lennon to end period poverty.

Free period products are also available in English schools, colleges and some UK government departments with HMRC introducing the measure in 2021 saying it would mean staff being treated with greater “empathy, dignity and respect.”

The fight for fairness at Beith comes after a long-running dispute last year when GMB members went on strike over claims of a “two-tier workforce" at the base, with managers and craft workers receiving bonuses while non-craft workers did not.